Mars Global Surveyor
Mars Orbiter Camera

The Martian North Polar Cap in Summer

This is a wide angle view of the martian north polar cap as it appeared
to the Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) in early
northern summer. The picture was acquired on March 13, 1999, near the
start of the Mapping Phase of the MGS mission. The light-toned surfaces
are residual water ice that remains through the summer season. The
nearly circular band of dark material surrounding the cap consists
mainly of sand dunes formed and shaped by wind. The north polar cap is
roughly 1100 kilometers (680 miles) across.

Image Credit: NASA/JPL/Malin Space Science Systems

Malin Space Science Systems and the California Institute of
Technology built the MOC using spare hardware from the Mars Observer
mission. MSSS operates the camera from its facilities in San Diego,
CA. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory's Mars Surveyor Operations Project
operates the Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft with its industrial
partner, Lockheed Martin Astronautics, from facilities in Pasadena, CA
and Denver, CO.